


Battle Scars

by AfflecksCanary



Category: Beauty and the Beast (1991), Beauty and the Beast (2017), Beauty and the Beast - All Media Types
Genre: 2017 Film, Beauty and the Beast, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Scars, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-02
Updated: 2017-04-02
Packaged: 2018-10-13 21:54:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10522662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AfflecksCanary/pseuds/AfflecksCanary
Summary: Belle has some battle scars of her own that the Beast discovers while getting to know Belle~~~~~Set during the Something There scene sorta





	

**Author's Note:**

> Ok so this contains a slight mention of past selfharm!
> 
> Also, thanks to my friend Danielle aka @anakinkylo on Twitter, this fic wouldn't have been possible without you 
> 
> Forgive any typos as well, I'm sleep deprived

He laughed as the snowball collided with her face, sending her to the ground. He laughed for a moment longer before he realized that she hadn't gotten back up. His face creased with worry, oh, if he'd hurt her....  
"Belle?" The beastly prince asked as he slowly walked towards the bridge. "Belle?" He asked again, a little more forceful, a little more worried. Before he could even glance towards where she lay, another snowball collided with his face. He growled slightly as he heard Belle's satisfied giggles. He ran his paw across his face, cleaning the snow away.

Belle's eyes twinkled as she met his gaze, sheepishly. He slowly moved towards her but then she winked and said "Catch me if you can." And took off in a flash down the stairs.

~~~~~

Belle glanced back over her shoulder as she ran down the steps of the bridge away from him; the irony wasn't lost on her. The last time that she had ran away from him, she'd been trying to escape. This time, she was playing with him in the snow. Oh, how things changed, she thought to herself.  
She paused for a moment realizing that she no longer saw the beastly Master behind her. She looked around quizzically. "Where are you?" She called out softly. Her face fell, for she was afraid that she'd been too upfront by asking him to play with her and had angered him somehow.  
Therefore, she let out a startled yell when a pile of snow suddenly landed atop her head and made her sink to the ground.  
Belle's eyes wandered up to the tree above her, where he sat with a pleased expression on his face. "Caught." He said, amusement sprinkled into his gruff voice. 

~~~~~~

 

Belle, who was still lying on the ground, started moving her arms and legs back and forth. Oh, he knew what she was doing...

Her eyes flickered up again and searched him. "Come on." She said softly. He felt his brow furrow. Something was wrong with all of this; his life never went this good but yet here he was, being asked to make a snow angel with a girl who was an angel herself.

He rolled his eyes as he carefully jumped down from the tree and lied down beside her in the cold snow. The two lied still, unmoving, only a few inches separating them from each other.  
They both stared up at the blue sky, both having thoughts about the beauty of it. She slowly started moving her arms again, then stood up to admire her work.  
The former Prince suddenly felt his heart stop and his breath catch as the sun illuminated her, making her look even more beautiful than she already did.  
Her forehead crinkled as she looked at her angel. "Your turn." She said, turning her gaze towards him. He swallowed hard as he slowly parodied her movements and stood to admire his work.  
He heard Belle's breath catch as she looked at his so-called angel. "It's an angel, see?" She said after a moment's pause. He closed his eyes, the print in the snow suddenly reminding him of the awful truth; no matter how human he felt around Belle, he was still a beast. "That's no angel...that's the shadow of a monster." He said quietly, the clarity of his voice unnerving him.

~~~~~~~  
She frowned as he said those words. If she had to be honest, it broke her heart a bit that he couldn't see the good himself...the angel, she finally thought. She fought the urge to look at him head on, for she could see him out of the corner of her eye and he was illuminated by the sun which made him look almost....she scolded herself inwardly. She couldn't think that. She wouldn't.

~~~~~~

Belle suddenly broke the awkward silence. "Can I ask you a question?" She asked. He turned towards her, seeing curiosity mixed with what looked like embarrassment etched upon her face. "Of course." He replied after a moment's thought. He'd tell her all the secrets of the world if he could.

She stared up at the sky as she asked, "How long has it been?" 

Oh, he hadn't expected this. He knew what she meant by this question and he wanted to tell her, but he was determined to keep his walls up for as long as possible both for her and him.

"What do you mean?" He asked slowly. Belle's eyes were locked upon him, her hand slowly moving towards his. "Since...you were...well, you know. Human?"  
He winced inwardly. His hunch had been correct as usual. "I...um...well..." He stuttered out. "You don't have to answer." Belle said softly, her beautiful eyes never leaving his face. He took a deep breath. "It's been...a while." He said, defeated.

He felt himself start as she interlocked her hand with his paw. "I won't bite." She said, her eyes twinkling like the stars. He smiled slightly at the irony of her words. "Belle...I'm sorry. That I couldn't answer that for you." He said finally. Belle squeezed his paw as she looked at her feet. "I don't mind. Really I don't."

~~~~~~~~  
The two of them stood there in awkward silence again, both cold and wet from the snow. She shivered slightly as she stood. She could tell that he had sensed her discomfort as well. "Would you like to go back inside?" He asked after a moment.  
Belle paused momentarily then nodded. "It would be warmer."  
He carefully extended his arm to her, which she gladly took, thankful for the extra warmth and comfort that it provided.  
The pair walked in silence until they reached the steps which separated their wings of the castle. She smiled and curtsied slightly, which provided her with a small chuckle from him, as she went up the stairs. "Will I be seeing you again tonight?" She suddenly found herself asking. She heard his heavy footsteps stop from behind her. "If that's what you wish." He said after a momentary pause. 

~~~~~~

Once he reached his safe haven of the West Wing, he leaned back against the doors and sighed. Nothing seemed to add up anymore. His life seemed to make even less sense with her here. But, he thought, he wouldn't have wanted her out of it.  
He glanced down at the rose on his small table, the timer to which his life was tied. He sighed again as he contemplated all of his options; surely, he didn't actually have a chance to break the curse even with Belle at the castle, because even if she could grow to care for him in friendship, she couldn't love him, he knew.  
He looked away from the table and looked around the room instead. It was cleaner now than it had been in years, thanks to Belle, but the scars were still there. The room reflected him in a way, he supposed.

It was covered in scratches from where he'd clawed at it, he was covered in scars from where he'd clawed at himself in a attempt to find human skin underneath it all when he had first been cursed.  
But then...Belle. She'd came and she had helped to clean the room and to mend him as well. She was....breathtaking in every way, he thought as he glanced out at the night sky. She was breathtaking and here, he was...keeping her prisoner. He knew that she was free, that he wouldn't ever try to stop her from leaving again but he was scared to tell her for fear that she would leave him...

~~~~~~~~

Belle slammed her bedroom door, her heart pounding in her chest. She sighed in relief, thinking she was alone when a female voice suddenly screeched at her. Belle yelped, having forgotten her wardrobe. "Hello, Madame Garderobe." She said as she walked towards her. The wardrobe did its best impression of a smile before saying, "Did you have fun, dear?"  
Belle's eyes widened. "How did you know about that?" She asked, confused. Garderobe laughed a little and replied in a surprisingly somber tone, "We could hear your laughter. It's a sound that hasn't been heard in this castle in a while."  
Belle smiled sadly. "I wish I could help you all...." She said as she stared at her hands. "You already have." The wardrobe replied. 

~~~~~~~~~

He sat down in his chair softly, not really expecting to Belle actually come to dinner. He wouldn't blame her if she didn't.  
He was sitting still, staring at the door when it opened revealing Belle in a beautiful pink dress, taking his breath away.

 

He stared at her for a moment and then looked away, Belle blushing madly. He carefully glanced up to see her staring at him as well. "You look...nice." He said finally. She blushed even more furiously as she whispered, "Thank you. You do as well."  
He almost choked on her words. Had she said those words out of obligation or had she truly meant them? He didn't know and he didn't care to ask, so the beastly master chose to ignore it. 

Belle sat down on the opposite end of the grand dining table, and he briefly felt a pang of disappointment that he couldn't be seated next to her. He saw her pull her book out the pocket on her dress and he smirked for he had a pretty good idea of what she was reading. "Romeo and Juliet?" He asked after she opened the book. Belle glanced up, startled, before seeing the twinkle in his eyes. "Well...yes." She said sheepishly. He smiled softly at her. "I'll never understand your obsession with that play." He said, rolling his eyes. Belle opened her mouth to speak before, suddenly, the servants came with dishes of the finest foods. He mentally cursed them for their impeccable timing.  
Lumíere jumped onto the table, already prepared to put on a show for Belle before a kind matronly voice said, "Lumíere, are you sure that now is the time?"  
Lumíere's head whipped around to face the voice of the teapot sitting on a tea trolley. He narrowed his little metal eyes and started to speak before a sharp glare from the teapot shut him up. "Well...then...Goodnight, I suppose. Master. Mademoiselle." The candelabrum said as he bowed to both Belle and his Master. 

~~~~~~~

Belle had to admit that she had found her dinner partner's expression quite amusing when Lumiere had jumped upon the table. He had rolled his eyes and glared at Lumieré with a fierceness that she hadn't seen in a while; she hadn't taken it as a threat towards Lumiere though. She'd analyzed the glare as a mixture of exasperation and tiredness, because if she was being honest, she had felt the exact same way.

As soon as the servants left and the awkward couple was left alone with only their soup and each other's company, Belle stole a glance across the table. He was attempting to use a spoon, she noted. She imagined that he hadn't done that in quite a while.  
"Having fun?" She said playfully. His head jerked up, meeting her amused gaze. "No." He said gruffly. Belle smiled softly. "You asked why Romeo and Juliet was my favorite play." She said after pausing to try some of her bowl of soup. He nodded, his interest caught. She shrugged slightly as she said, "It took me away from the mundanity of it all. Of the village life. I always wanted something more....plus, all the heartbreak and pining gave it some extra appeal." She winked as she finished her sentence.  
He rolled his eyes at her wink before his face turned somber. "I used to love reading for several of the same reasons as you...except I hated the mundanity of Royal life." He said, chuckling slightly at the irony of difference. "I'm assuming your mother loved to read?" Belle asked casually, hoping to chip her way into his stone cold heart slowly. His eyes hardened for a moment but quickly softened and became full of melancholy remembrance.  
"Yeah, she did." He said softly, staring at his soup. Belle frowned as she tried to respond. "My father says that my mother liked reading. I never knew my mother, and he'll never tell me what happened to her. I resent him sometimes for it." 

~~~~~

He saw the pain on her face as she spoke those words. He took a brief moment to process his next decision, wondering if he ultimately would regret it. "May I join you? At your end of the table, I mean." He asked.  
Belle's eyes flickered up, suddenly full of sparkle again. "Of course." She said, her tone having changed.  
The Beast walked towards her slowly, already regretting his choice. He slowly slid the chair next to hers out from under the table. Her eyes wandered onto him, clearly searching for something.  
He took notice of this almost as soon as she did it. His gaze shifted upon her, a questioning look on his face.  
Belle blushed furiously and said, "Sorry...I was just trying to see something." Oh, now this was something that he was interested in.  
"And that may be?" He asked quizzically. 

Belle's eyes met his, beseechingly. "Scars." She finally said, plainly. He drew a sharp breath. "Scars." He repeated after a moment. She nodded as if it were the plainest thing in the world. "Well, you know that I have them. You said it yourself, you know, from the wolf attack." He replied.  
Belle rolled her eyes before picking up her book. "Never mind. It's not important. I'll be in the library. You may join me if you wish." She said as she stood and waltzed out of the room, leaving him dazed and confused.

~~~~~~~~

She didn't know why she had bothered. She wasn't going to be able to pry her way in that easily. She slowly sank down into her favorite chair in the library, feeling it's warmth envelop her.  
She had been foolish to try, she thought as she rolled up her sleeves and looked at the thin white lines that ran across her arm, near her elbow. She didn't know why she even thought that he might know what she was talking about; he had grown up as a Prince after all. He hadn't ever felt awkward or different. He hadn't ever felt broken.

She cringed as she realized what she had just thought. Of course he had, he was cursed after all. She shook her head. It was hopeless to think that she'd find someone who understood what she had done as a young teenager...

~~~~~~

He took a breath as he knocked on the library door. It had taken a few moments but he had finally figured out what she had meant by 'scars'. "Come in." Her beautiful melodic voice called from inside. He walked in slowly, seeing her in the chair which made her look much tinier than she she already did. 

He slowly sank to the floor beside the chair, sensing her eyes upon him. "I'm sorry." She whispered softly. He turned towards her, seeing her eyes swimming with tears. He longed to reach out and touch her but he resisted the urge. "For what?" He asked, concern lacing his voice. A tear slid down Belle's soft cheek as she whispered, "For snapping at you. I just thought that you'd understand."  
His heart broke in that moment. Belle had came to him for solace and understanding and he had rejected her. He had failed yet again. He stared at her, sadly, watching as her tears fell from her cheeks onto her book. "It's just...when I was younger, everyone thought I was so different and I felt broken somehow....I can't explain it. I wanted to feel better, I wanted to focus on things other than me and the pain that came from what I did, helped. It helped me to drown out the pain that they caused as well." She choked out. He carefully laid his paw on her hand. "It's okay." He said softly. "I'm here now and I don't think that you're different or broken. I think. You're strong and confident, which is incredibly obvious because you stood up to me, didn't you?" 

~~~~~~

She smiled at his attempt to cheer her up. She slowly slid out of her chair and looked at him, directly in the eyes. "It's okay." She said softly, rolling down her sleeves. 

She could sense his eyes upon her as she sat down beside him. She reached over into the pile of books beside her and pulled out a random one. 

"Read it to me?" She asked softly, watching his eyes widen. "Um...yeah?" He replied. 

He opened the book carefully and began reading, his gravelly voice shaking.  
Belle found his voice to be soothing and soon found herself growing tired. She yawned slightly and stretched out.

~~~~~~

He suddenly realized that his reading had put the young woman to sleep. He quickly scooped her up into his arms, hoping she wouldn't wake for he was carrying her to her room.

He opened the door and carefully laid her in the bed. He watched her sleep peacefully before whispering, "I love you."

**Author's Note:**

> Please comment and leave kudos!!! (You don't have to log in to leave kudos ;) )


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